SANTA JUSTA LIFT

Description

Essentials about the Santa Justa Lift in brief

The Elevador de Santa Justa (Santa Justa Lift) is probably the most extraordinary sight in Lisbon. What other city can claim to have an artfully designed elevator in the middle of the city center? And for good reason – after all, Lisbon is an extremely hilly city, so getting from one part of the city to the next can be very arduous. Thus, the Santa Justa Lift was not built for tourist motives, but was intended to serve local transport (today, however, tourists make up a large part of the passengers). The 45-meter-high elevator connects the Baixa district (Lower Town) with the two higher districts of Chiado and Bairro Alto (Upper Town).

The history and architecture of the Santa Justa Lift

The striking steel structure in neo-Gothic style was built in 1902 according to plans by engineer Raoul Mesnier de Ponsard, a student of Gustave Eiffel. It is no wonder that the Santa Justa Lift bears a certain resemblance to the Eiffel Tower in Paris. Iron, after all, was the preferred building material around the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. It symbolized progress and allowed for rich ornamentation of the structures. In the first five years of operation, the lift was still powered by a steam engine. This was replaced by electric motors in 1907.

The ride with the Santa Justa Lift

The lift is often called “Elevador do Carmo” by the locals, as its upper entrance is right by the ruins of the Carmelite Carmo Convent. The lower entrance of the Elevador is located on Rua Santa Justa, just a short distance from the central Rossio Square.

Passengers ride up and down, respectively, in two beautifully wood-paneled historic elevator cars with windows and brass fittings. Each cabin holds 24 people. During the two-minute ride, one sees mainly the iron framework of the elevator tower. However, the view from the upper station is all the more beautiful. Once there, you can climb two more floors on foot via iron spiral staircases. One floor above the upper exit, the two original elevator machines can be seen in operation. Another floor above is an observation deck with a café, offering spectacular views over the rooftops of the Baixa and Chiado neighborhoods, and to the Castelo de São Jorge on the other side.

Practical tips for the Santa Justa Lift

Last but not least, two practical tips. Firstly, as the Santa Justa Lift is an enormously popular attraction these days, the queues are very long during the day (especially in the summer months) and you can expect to wait up to 45 minutes. As a result, locals largely avoid the lift, preferring to take the escalator or elevator at the Baixa-Chiado metro station. Secondly, since the Santa Justa Lift is still part of Lisbon’s public transport system, it can be used with tickets from the city’s Carris transport company. So if you want to discover more of Lisbon and also save money, it’s best to buy a Carris day ticket.